3D Animation of Alzheimer’s-Linked STEP Protein

Paul Lambroso, MD, Professor of Neurobiology and Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine, shares research on a molecule that could inhibit the buildup of the striatal-enriched protein tyrosine phosphatase. The STEP protein, as it is known, was identified by Dr. Lambroso about 20 years ago and has since been linked to the occurrence of Alzheimer’s disease.

Elevated levels of STEP can have a negative effect on memory by removing glutamate receptors from the postsynaptic membrane too rapidly. These receptors are responsible for converting short-term experiences into long-term memories, but if they are not allowed to remain on the synaptic membranes for an acceptable period of time, new memories cannot be formed. Dr. Lambroso and his team at Yale’s Laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology have discovered a STEP-inhibitor that has been shown to reverse the cognitive-deficits of mice with the equivalent of Alzheimer’s-linked STEP levels in humans.